Practice Areas

Stephen Williamson is a principal with The Van Winkle Law Firm, where he
focuses his practice on employment, construction and toxic tort litigation
in state and federal courts. While noted for his ability to provide clients
with vigorous defense, he has also represented plaintiffs successfully
in commercial litigation cases tried to verdict.

An author and frequent lecturer, Williamson also maintains an active administrative
practice, for which he appears before state and federal agencies.

Prior to law school, Williamson was a police officer in Texas. He applies
this experience to his practice today, where he has built a strong reputation
as a problem solver that helps employers tackle workplace violence. His
proactive approach to these matters involves developing corporate policies,
implementing procedures and training employers to evaluate circumstances
and intervene in situations before violence occurs.

Professional Affiliations

North Carolina State Bar

Texas State Bar

North Carolina Bar Association

26th Judicial District Bar

28th Judicial District Bar

Awards and Honors

AV Peer-Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell

Business North Carolina Legal Elite

Litigation Council of America

Practice Highlights

Construction

Represented general contractors in numerous contract disputes in Asheville,
Raleigh, Charlotte and Greensboro including the recovery of more than
$5.2 million from NCDOT.

Represented a primary defendant defending a $28 million claim arising out
of the construction of a hotel. Successfully negotiated settlement of
less than $1 million in multi-week mediation.

Assisted the designer with regard to a $300 million dispute arising out
of the construction of the Charlotte Light Rail system.

Assisted a general contractor with regard to a $150 million dispute arising
out of the construction of the Greensboro Western Loop.

Commercial Litigation

Recovered a multi-million dollar verdict for an airline in commercial litigation
arising out of the sale of Boeing 727, British Aircraft Corporation BAC-111
and Cessna Citation II.

Mass Tort Litigation

Representation of an interstate transportation company in mass tort litigation
arising out of an accident on Interstate 26 – an over-the-road truck
crashed spilling ultra-hazardous material closing the highway for several
weeks and necessitating the evacuation of local residents.

Employment

Defeated class certification and obtained summary judgment for the owners
of a hotel chain facing numerous wage and hour claims.

Successfully defended the employer in more than 100 workplace related claims.

Investigations

Retained by a Fortune 50 company operating approximately 2,000 home improvement
stores to investigate claims of widespread internal corruption and fraud.

Retained by a Fortune 250 company to lead the root cause investigation
into the workplace fatality at a nuclear power site.

Retained by a production manufacturing facility to investigate allegations
of widespread sexual assault and intimidation.

Retained by a Fortune 500 company operating approximately 7,000 retail
outlets with regard to workplace violence policy and investigations.

Prior to law school, Mr. Williamson was a police officer in Texas. Building
on that experience, combined with his experience in employment law, he
has developed a reputation as a problem solver for employers facing workplace
violence issues. He develops policies, implements procedures and creates
crisis intervention plans. He has also developed a collaborative approach
to training employers on proactive methods for evaluating and intervening
in situations before violence occurs.

Geographically Diverse

In addition to handling cases in North and South Carolina, Steve has been
involved in products cases pending in California, Texas, Illinois, New
York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Florida, Mississippi, Massachusetts, Tennessee
and Virginia.

An explorer at heart, Steve’s most recent travels took him to England,
Holland, France, Mexico and Grand Cayman.
Favorite Food: Texas barbecue

Charlotte

Hendersonville

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